GenitoUrinary Development Molecular Anatomy Project (GUDMAP) Database/Website Project (U24) | Apply Online

Frequently Asked Questions (FAQs)

What is this funding opportunity?

This opportunity is the GenitoUrinary Development Molecular Anatomy Project (GUDMAP) Database/Website Project (U24), FOA number RFA-DK-15-015. It is a National Institutes of Health (NIH) cooperative agreement intended to support a dedicated data coordinating center for the GUDMAP research consortium.

What is the main purpose of the award?

The main purpose is to sustain and expand the infrastructure that makes GUDMAP atlas data usable to the broader research community. The focus is on organizing, integrating, curating, and serving consortium datasets through a database and website that act as the central hub for data access, standards, and dissemination.

Is this grant meant to generate new biological discoveries?

No. The emphasis is not on generating new biological findings directly. Instead, the project is centered on data coordination and informatics: curation, quality control, integration, standardization, and delivery of the consortium data via a public-facing resource.

What is GUDMAP, and what has it produced so far?

GUDMAP is a research consortium that has produced a molecular anatomy atlas focused on the developing mouse (murine) kidney and lower urinary tract. The atlas maps gene and molecular marker expression during development in key genitourinary organs.

Why is the GUDMAP atlas considered scientifically valuable?

The atlas serves as a foundational reference resource for developmental biology and disease research. By defining where and when genes and molecular markers are expressed during development, it provides baseline information researchers can use to study organ formation (organogenesis), congenital malformations, and disrupted pathways in developmental disorders and later disease.

How could this resource support longer-term translational research goals?

By helping define what normal developmental programs look like, the atlas can inform longer-term goals such as tissue repair, regeneration, or replacement after injury. Knowing when and where critical cell populations and signals appear provides a reference for understanding and potentially guiding repair or regenerative strategies.

What does the U24 cooperative agreement mechanism mean for how the project will operate?

A U24 cooperative agreement typically involves substantial NIH programmatic involvement compared with a standard research grant. The coordinating center is generally expected to work closely with NIH and consortium members on shared goals, deliverables, timelines, data standards, and resource priorities.

What types of activities is the data coordinating center expected to perform?

Based on the announcement description, expected activities include maintaining the core database and public website, supporting consistent data submission from participating labs, implementing quality control and curation workflows, enabling search and visualization tools, ensuring long-term accessibility and interpretability of the data, and facilitating communication and coordination across GUDMAP participants.

What role does the database/website play within the consortium?

The database and website are intended to function as the central hub for data access, data standards, and dissemination. In practice, it is the primary platform through which users and consortium members access, submit, and use curated GUDMAP datasets.

What kinds of data are being supported by this infrastructure?

The infrastructure supports GUDMAP consortium datasets related to the molecular anatomy atlas of developing genitourinary organs, specifically emphasizing the developing mouse kidney and lower urinary tract, including gene and molecular marker expression information mapped during development.

Which NIH institute is associated with this opportunity?

The opportunity is associated with the National Institute of Diabetes and Digestive and Kidney Diseases (NIDDK), aligning with the kidney and urinary tract focus of the GUDMAP atlas.

What is the CFDA number for this opportunity?

The CFDA number is 93.847.

What is the maximum award amount listed for this FOA?

The award ceiling listed is $500,000.

Is cost sharing or matching required?

No. The announcement states there is no cost sharing or matching requirement.

Is this opportunity still open?

No. The opportunity is time-limited and has been archived. It was posted/created on July 23, 2015, had a closing date of November 9, 2015, and an archive date of December 10, 2015.

Who is eligible to apply?

Eligibility is broad across U.S.-based organizational types. Eligible applicants include public and private institutions of higher education, nonprofit organizations (including those with and without 501(c)(3) status), small businesses, other for-profit organizations, and multiple levels of government (including state, county, city/township, special district, independent school districts, and public housing authorities/Indian housing authorities).

Are small businesses and for-profit organizations eligible?

Yes. Small businesses are explicitly included, and other for-profit organizations are also listed as eligible organizational types.

Are government entities eligible to apply?

Yes. The eligibility description includes multiple levels of government, such as state, county, city/township, special district, independent school districts, and public housing authorities/Indian housing authorities.

Are specific institution types and community-serving organizations highlighted as eligible?

Yes. The eligibility section highlights designated institution types and community-serving organizations, including Historically Black Colleges and Universities (HBCUs), Hispanic-serving institutions, Tribal Colleges and Universities, Alaska Native and Native Hawaiian Serving Institutions, Asian American Native American Pacific Islander Serving Institutions, faith-based or community-based organizations, and regional organizations.

Can foreign (non-U.S.) institutions apply?

No. Foreign institutions (non-U.S. entities) are not eligible to apply.

Are foreign components allowed under NIH policy?

Yes. While foreign institutions are not eligible to apply, foreign components (as defined by NIH policy) are allowed.

Are non-domestic components of U.S. organizations eligible?

Yes. The eligibility description indicates that non-domestic components of U.S. organizations may be eligible.

What is the core message of what NIH was seeking through this FOA?

The central message is that NIH was seeking the informatics and coordination backbone for a high-value developmental biology resource. The goal was to ensure GUDMAP data are collected in consistent formats, validated and curated to maintain quality, integrated across datasets and sites, and delivered through an accessible web platform that enables broad reuse by researchers.

What research areas does this resource primarily support?

The resource is positioned to support research on development, congenital anomalies, and disease mechanisms affecting the kidney and lower urinary tract, by providing a baseline reference of developmental gene and marker expression patterns.

Where was the full announcement made available, and who was listed for help with access issues?

The FOA included a link to the full announcement on the NIH grants site. For access or technical linking issues, contact information was provided through the NIH Office of Extramural Research (OER) webmaster.